1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a method for reading a specific portion of document in a flat-bed type multi-function product, and more particularly, in a flat-bed type multifunction product, a method of determining scanning section coordinates, which are the vertical and horizontal coordinates for a scanning section, from a ruler of the document loading surface and then reading the scanning section in the desired resolution by inputting the scanning section coordinates through an operation panel.
2. Related Art
Recently, through the lift of the rapid development of office appliances, as the demand for office appliances such as printers, scanners, digital photocopiers and facsimiles is on a sudden up-rise, the respective office appliances are being developed for higher performance to expand their characteristic features. In addition, respective office appliances, which were used independently, are now being developed into a single integrated unit, and products, which reduce expenses on the part of the consumers, save installation space and at the same time perform multi-document output functions, are being produced and supplied. Generally, these products are referred to as xe2x80x98all-in-onexe2x80x99 multifunction products (MFP).
In other words, the multifunction product is a machine with multi-document output functions that performs not only functions as a printer which prints data inputted into the host computer, but also has functions of a scanner which reads images, a digital photocopier which copies scanned and printed images, and a facsimile which transmits images through communication lines. Namely, as a multifunction product which is the combination of the existing sole unit such as the facsimile, scanner, printer, and digital photocopier, it is typical that the multifunction product is provided with a host computer interface function of inter-operation with the host computer.
Mainly there are two types of scanners available, i.e. the flat-bed type and the sheet-feed type, and this invention relates to the flat-bed type.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram which depicts the hardware composition of a standard flat-bed type multifunction product.
In a conventional flat-bed type multifunction product, the CPU (central processing unit; 100) performs the function of controlling the overall copying, transmitting and receiving of documents according to a predetermined program. The memory 107 has the program data and the protocol data stored therein and accesses or stores the document image data and the reception data through the control of the CPU 100.
The operation panel 105 is provided with numerous keys that generate key data which set the system actuation modes, and when the key data is generated, it is inputted into the CPU 100, and a display (that is, an indication device) shows the indication data of the CPU 100.
The flat-bed type scanner module 104 reads image data. The scanner module moves beneath a glass surface upon which documents are arranged and reads the document placed on the loading surface. The main function of the scanner module is reading the document image and providing digital data to the CPU 100.
By the control commands received from the CPU 100, the modem 102 modulates the output data of the CPU 100 to an analog format and then demodulates analog reception input and outputs the output data. The communication control unit 101 is actuated according to the controls of the CPU 100, and forms a phone line (tip, ring) communication loop, and performs interfacing functions between the (de)modulated signals of the modem 102 and the phone line signals.
The printer 103 prints the document image data read from the flat-bed scanner module 104 and the reception data from the modem 102 according to control signals of the CPU 100. The sensor 106 monitors the remaining amount of paper and provides this information to the CPU 100, and the speaker 108 performs the function of generating warning sounds according to the controls of the CPU 100.
The present invention directly relates to the scanning section setting method of a flat-bed type multifunction product configured as the above, and therefore the scanning section setting method according to prior art will be discussed.
In the case of the flat-bed type scanner according to prior art, most typically the function of pre-scanning is chosen and used for the method of reading a desired portion of a document. For example, to obtain the overall shape of information of a document with a low resolution of approximately 75 dpi (dots per inch), the pre-scan data is read at a high speed and then the pre-scanned data is displayed on a monitor of a connected computer, and when the user selects the desired section, data scanning for the final desired section is performed by reading the selected section once more at a resolution selected by the user.
As another method, the editing method is used, wherein the maximum readable domain is scanned at a resolution selected by the user, and then when the scanned data is displayed on a monitor of a connected computer, all other sections excluding the desired section are deleted.
However, in the prior art scanning section selection method, although the former supplements the drawbacks in reading speed by choosing the pre-scan concept, there is the inconvenience of having to perform re-scanning in the resolution selected by the user after low resolution pre-scanning has been performed, and there is also the disadvantage of having to waste several minutes of time for preparation to read the desired sections of a document depending on the interface modes of the computer in use.
On the other hand, since the latter is a method in which the document is scanned at actual resolution and then edited, it may be considered as a very inefficient method for reading selected sections of a document because the time wasted for scanning the whole document must be compromised.
Furthermore, in reading documents with the scanning section selecting methods of the above prior art, not only do the methods read sections that are not wanted by the user, but when the size of the actual document is smaller than the total reading domain, there is a problem of needlessly scanning sections which do not even exist.
In addition, to support the flat-bed type digital photocopying function which is included in standard flat-bed type multifunction products, there is always a defined reference point, and therefore to reduce or magnify desired portions, there is a disadvantage of having to perform photocopying by rearranging the needed portion of the document on to the reference point.
Therefore the intention of this invention to resolve the problems set forth in a flat-bed type multifunction product, where the object thereof is to provide a selected section reading method of a flat-bed type multifunction product which enables fast and accurate scanning of only the desired selected section by inputting the scanning section coordinates through the user after determining the coordinates of the desired scanning section by using a ruler on the loading surface.
To achieve the above object, in setting the scanning section of the flat-bed type multifunction product, the selected section reading method according to the present invention is characterized in that, it allows scanning of the desired selected scanning section included in the total readable domain, in the actual resolution that the user desires without performing pre-scanning and moving the document, by limiting the necessary selected section by inputting the horizontal and vertical direction coordinates through the operation panel after determining the horizontal and vertical coordinates for the scanning section from the ruler of the loading surface, and it allows reducing, magnifying, and quality improvement processing of the scanned portion and one-to-one scale photocopying, storing, and facsimile transmissions.